LAFAYETTE -- Emeka Okafor, the New Orleans Hornets' biggest offseason acquisition, was held out of contact work for the second consecutive day Wednesday because of soreness below his knee.

Jennifer Zdon/The Times-PicayuneNew Orleans Hornets center Emeka Okafor will be evaluated by team trainer today."We haven't done any contact stuff with him because we just don't know what he can take right now, " Hornets Coach Byron Scott said after Wednesday's practice, in which Okafor mostly watched from the sideline. "We have some concerns of something that he did this summer, so we just want to make sure he's OK before we try to put him through a full day of practice."

Okafor, 6 feet 10, 255 pounds and the team's starting center, will be evaluated by trainer Terry Kofler today, and Scott did not rule out that he could be held out the remainder of training camp, which ends Sunday at Louisiana-Lafayette.

Okafor's durability was a convincing factor for Hornets General Manager Jeff Bower to make the trade. Okafor has not missed a regular-season game since the 2006-07 season.

"I don't expect for him to miss a whole lot of games this year, " Scott said. "But the one thing we want to do is give him ample time to heal. Right now, we're in the early stages of the season; we're talking about training camp and preseason.

"This is not a time for us to be concerned about whatever is going on with him right now. Like I said, we'll have better answers tomorrow. And if the answers that we have is to limit and not practice him for another week or so, that's fine, too. Like I said, it's a long season, and we need him for the long haul, not just the short term. . . . I'm not real worried about it."

Okafor, an effective mid-range scorer and low-post player, is expected to strengthen the Hornets' frontcourt. He was one of six new players the Hornets acquired to improve the team after a disappointing first-round playoff elimination by Denver last season.

"We've obviously got to get Emeka out there on the floor with us, " forward David West said. "He's just got to get healthy."

Free-agent signee Ike Diogu, expected to contend for playing time as a backup power forward with Darius Songaila, was limited for the second consecutive day because of a sore knee. Scott said Diogu injured his knee while preparing for training camp.

"We know what the problem is, and we're just trying to bring him along slowly, " Scott said. "He's doing a lot of stuff at the beginning of practice, a lot of individual work. Each day he feels better, but we don't want to push it."

After Tuesday's opening training-camp practice, Scott said no players were limited. But toward the end of the workout, reserve forward James Posey moved awkwardly as he went through a walk-through drill. Posey has not missed practice time, according to Scott, but he is slowed by a sore hip.

BACK TO WORK: After describing Tuesday's opening day of camp as one of the best, Scott put his players through another intense workout Wednesday. The Hornets worked for 2 1/2 hours.

"Obviously today, guys were a little more familiar, " point guard Chris Paul said. "I definitely paid attention to some of the new guys and rookies to see how they were going to bounce back. But those guys have been flying around with a lot of energy, and that's something I think we've been missing."

Scott said there are still players who need to get familiar with the offensive sets, but he is pleased with the progress made during Wednesday's scrimmage. He said the most competitive battle so far is between first-round draft pick Darren Collison and second-year player Bobby Brown at backup point guard.

"Both of them had their moments, " Scott said. "The biggest advantage Bobby has is his experience. He understands what this league is all about. It's going to take Darren a little time to catch hold of what we're doing on the offensive end. He is so used to having the ball in his hands that he's breaking plays to get the ball. I'm just trying to get him to understand that he has to be a little more patient."

UNDECIDED: Unlike Denver's Carmelo Anthony and Utah's Deron Williams, Paul said he has not decided if he will play for Team USA at the FIBA World Championship in Turkey next summer. Paul said he has not talked to USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo since July.

In 2008, Paul helped Team USA win a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics.